2008 April
Focus on... Real Estate Market/Expo

As 2007 came to a close, it seemed that the real estate market in nearly every part of the country had cooled. But in New York City, although movement had slowed, the market did not take a downturn as many had expected. Co-ops and condos…

As the housing market boomed in the early parts of the last decade, apartments in New York City seemed to be snapped up mere days (sometimes mere hours) after being put on the market. As the trend continued, thousands of people set out t…

When one looks at the real estate market in New York City—which, excluding such homeowners’ havens as Bay Ridge, Bayside and Staten Island, usually means the apartment market—one sees a picture similar to last year. All over the country, on…

In the 1950s, televisions were pieces of furniture the size of deep freezers. In 2008, TVs are flat and hang on a wall. The 50’s were about jukeboxes; the 80’s saw the Walkman and CD player and, today, it’s the small-but-mighty iPod. And…

If one aspect of New York has remained constant since the city’s founding, it’s that nothing remains constant. New York’s own Washington Irving, the writer for whom Irving Place is named, groused in his September years that the city he r…

With new and luxurious condos going up all the time across the city, management companies are champing at the bit to become the first managing agent for these often high-profile, upscale properties. If it’s a choice between managing a ne…

The Big Apple. Paris has just as much romantic cachet. Rome is every bit as frenetic. London has excellent theater, too, and there are also esteemed financial institutions in Zurich and Hong Kong and Frankfurt. Tokyo and Mumbai and Jakar…

Ask Scott Stringer to describe a typical day in his job as Manhattan Borough President and he’ll answer that there’s no such thing—and that’s the way he likes it. “I haven’t found one yet,” he says. “Part of what we’ve tried to do s…

New York City’s governing structure is complex for a metropolis of 8.2 million residents—it takes a lot of people in a lot of departments and organizations to keep the city running smoothly. Some of those people (the mayor, for instance)…

Emma Lazarus perhaps said it best in her immortal poem in which she spoke about the wave of immigrants that were welcomed to American’s golden shores. Generation upon generation of newcomers have chosen to settle in New York City and its…

Yale Robbins, Inc. would like to warmly welcome our sponsors, exhibitors, and guests to The Cooperator’s 21st Annual Co-op & Condo Expo on April 29th at the Hilton New York. This year’s event from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. will continue our long-…

It’s difficult to plan a budget for your building—and, more importantly, to stick to it—if problems arise that your board/management team haven’t anticipated. Maintenance issues and structural crises aren’t just inconvenient surprises; i…

For the past year or so, PlaNYC 2030, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s sustainability initiative (“sustainability” being a new buzz word for “environmentally friendly” or “contributing to a better quality of life”) has taken center stage at …

The snow is gone, the thermometer is inching higher, flowers are blooming and you’re ready for springtime. Unfortunately, your building may not be. Thanks to winter’s sand, snow, grit and lack of attention, things may be in less-than-gor…

Inside most multi-unit residential buildings, there are many areas that should be strictly off-limits to everyone but trained building staff—and we’re not just talking about the manager’s inbox. Machine rooms, elevator shafts, compactor …

For anyone getting a mortgage for a new apartment, a property appraisal is part of the cost of securing their new place. In fact, for existing apartment owners, it’s one of the most important things they can do for their property. An app…

Imagine the biggest three-dimensional puzzle you can. Now imagine fitting eight million people into this puzzle. Putting the pieces together takes more than just luck. It takes enormous skill, precision and foresight. Those are three att…

With so much going on, so much frenetic energy, life in New York City takes the utmost focus. The senses are overwhelmed with stimuli—people, dogs in sweaters, neon advertisements, new construction, bleating traffic—and amidst all that, …

Most board members are volunteers—some may have experience with certain aspects of running a building, but most come to the job relatively green, armed only with a sense of responsibility and a desire to serve their building community. S…

Over the past three years, bedbug infestations have increased exponentially in New York City, causing panic among homeowners, co-op/condo boards and property managers. In 2004, there were 1,800 bedbug complaints recorded by the city. By …